Pregnancy and its endpoint, labor, mark the start of parenthood, a new phase of life, for millions of women worldwide each year. During this exciting time, the baby develops from a fertilized egg into an infant ready to be born. After a gestation of approximately 40 weeks, labor begins the process of birth.
Pregnancy
On average, pregnancy lasts 40 weeks, although anything between 37 to 42 weeks is still considered normal. Pregnancy is often referred to in trimesters, with the first trimester being the first three months, the second trimester being months four to seven, and the final trimester beginning at the start of month eight and continuing to the end of the pregnancy.
Medical Care
For low-risk pregnancies, prenatal care may simply involve basic health checks and recommendations for healthy eating and prenatal supplements, such as increased folic acid intake. For mothers who have preexisting health conditions or are older than 35, prenatal care may involve multiple ultrasounds, blood and urine tests and fetal monitoring. Medical intervention during labor is typically up to the mother, who may opt for a hospital birth with high levels of intervention, a home birth attended only by her family or a midwife or some level of medical care in between.
Stages of Labor
Labor begins with uterine contractions that gradually get closer together and more intense over time. Labor consists of three phases. During the first stage of labor, the cervix dilates and effaces, becoming thinner and opening up to a total of ten centimeters in diameter. The first stage is divided into two parts, early labor and active labor. In early labor, the dilation and effacement of the cervix occurs slowly, lasting anywhere from a few hours to multiple days. As active labor begins, the changes in the cervix speed up and contractions become more intense. The last two stages of labor are the actual delivery of the baby and the delivery of the placenta after birth.
Pain Management
Labor can be painful and there are many options available to ease the pain. Natural methods of pain relief include breathing exercises, self-hypnosis, relaxation techniques, changing the position of the woman; and using heat and cold. Spinal blocks and epidurals, in which pain medication is directly administered to the lower spine via an injection or continuously through a tube, are common forms of pharmacological pain relief given during a normal delivery.
Potential Complications
Potential complications during pregnancy include birth defects discovered in the womb via prenatal testing or ultrasound, placental problems that may lead to fetal growth restriction or premature birth; and health problems in the mother, such as gestational diabetes or preeclampsia.
Problems during labor may include fetal distress, health problems in the mother or a physical problem such as a breech baby or an umbilical cord looped around the baby's neck. These problems can generally be managed in a hospital setting, though some may require an emergency Cesarean section or continual monitoring during labor. However, most women have no major complications throughout pregnancy and labor.
